Quiz: Howstuffworks

Do You Know These Baseball Triple Crown Winners?

John Miller

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About This Quiz

Major league baseball is a statistics-driven enterprise, one in which every pitch and error is recorded with meticulous obsessiveness. And in the empire of the major leagues, the Triple Crown is a true statistical unicorn, one that many players dream of but only a scarce few accomplish. Do you think you really know anything about baseball’s Triple Crown winners?

Winning the Triple Crown is pretty much a guarantee of sports immortality, and in today's baseball world it will also bring one of those salaries that SportsCenter commentators crow about.

The batting Triple Crown is a true sports rarity, achieved just a handful of times in a century-plus on the diamond. In our quiz, we’ll see if you recall the men — like Ty Cobb and Jimmie Foxx — who slugged their way to iconic status.

We’ll review the timeless feats of the likes of Roger Hornsby, Chuck Klein, Lou Gehrig, Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle and more. Some of these players won the World Series, some didn’t, but all of them wound up as giants of the game.

Baseball’s biggest teams, like the Yankees, Red Sox and Phillies all featured Triple Crown players. Grab your favorite Louisville Slugger, step up to the plate, and prove that you really know these Triple Crown kings!

What does the "Triple Crown" mean in Major League Baseball?

It means a player won the home run title three consecutive years.

It refers to batting accomplishments.

It means a player has been voted homecoming king three years in a row.

In MLB, the Triple Crown refers to an amazing batting accomplishment. In general, it means a player led in three major essential categories in a single season.

Which category is generally NOT included in the Triple Crown?

RBIs

total home runs

ERA

ERA is pitching statistic. The batting Triple Crown generally goes to the player who leads in home runs, RBIs and batting average.

How many times has the Triple Crown been accomplished in the major leagues?

177 times

17 times

twice

In the history of the major leagues, the Triple Crown has only been achieved 17 times. That means these players are legendary.

Who was the Triple Crown winner in 1967?

Carl Yastrzemski

Barry Bonds

Cal Ripken, Jr.

In 1967, Carl Yastrzemski made history by becoming a Triple Crown winner. He is still one of the most famous left fielders in Red Sox lore.

After Yastrzemski won the batting Triple Crown in 1967, how long was it before another MLB player won the title?

1 year

10 years

45 years

Triple Crowns are exceedingly rare. After Yastrzemski won, it was 45 years before Miguel Cabrera won the next.

In 1956, which Yankees star won the Triple Crown?

Derek Jeter

Alex Rodriguez

Mickey Mantle

In 1956, Mickey Mantle stole America’s hearts and seized the Triple Crown. He had a spectacular .353 batting average that season.

How many players have won multiple Triple Crowns?

2

9

19

In the history of the major leagues, just two players have won multiple Triple Crowns. They are (drum roll, please...) Ted Williams and Roger Hornsby.

Roger Hornsby won the Triple Crown twice as a member of the ______.

White Sox

Cardinals

Braves

Hornsby was a star player for the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1920s. He was, without a doubt, the dominant offensive player of that decade.

In 2012, Miguel Cabrera won the Triple Crown as a member of which club?

Kansas City Royals

Detroit Tigers

New York Yankees

Cabrera was a Tigers star when he won the Triple Crown in 2012. His feat made "Miggy" a star for the ages.

In what year did baseball’s first Triple Crown occur?

1878

1952

1999

In 1878, the first Triple Crowns happened. It all started with Paul Hines of the the Providence Greys. He was the charter member of a very exclusive club.

Mickey Mantle won the Triple Crown in 1956. How many home runs did he hit that year?

38

52

71

Mantle blasted 52 home runs in 1956. That put him 20 home runs ahead of second-place Vic Wertz.

In 1965, the Cincinnati Reds traded Frank Robinson to which team?

Colorado Rockies

San Diego Padres

Baltimore Orioles

Talk about a terrible trade. The Reds packed Robinson off to Baltimore and he responded with a Triple Crown season, batting .316 for his new team.

Ty Cobb won the Triple Crown in 1909. How many home runs did he hit that year?

9

39

69

In 1909, home runs were a whole rarer than they are today. Cobb hit nine home runs, enough to help him earn the Triple Crown.

Miguel Cabrera won the Triple Crown in 2012. Did he also win AL MVP?

Yes

No

Um, you better believe it! Not only did Cabrera win AL MVP, but he won the award two seasons in a row.

Roger Hornsby won the Triple Crown twice. Both times, his batting average topped _____.

.300

.400

.500

Hornsby was on fire in the 1920s. Both times he won the Triple Crown, he batting average exceeded .400.

Carl Yastrzemski wasn’t just a Triple Crown winner. He also holds which other amazing stat?

first in stolen bases

second-most games played

third-most home runs

Yastrzemski not only won the Triple Crown, but he’s also second on the list of games played. He played 3,308 games, just behind Cal Ripken, Jr.’s 3,562.

True or false, when Frank Robinson won the Triple Crown in 1966, was it the first time he’d ever led in the three batting categories used to award the title?

True

False

Robinson played for 21 seasons, but in only one year did he lead any of the batting categories in the Triple Crown. And as it turned out, he wound up leading all three categories ... and became a legend.

In 1878, Paul Hines won the very first Triple Crown. How many home runs did he smack that year?

4

24

44

There may not have been many home runs in early baseball, but at least you knew steroids weren’t involved. Hines hit four home runs during his 1878 Triple Crown campaign.

In 1894, Hugh Duffy won the Triple Crown as a member of the Boston ______.

Patriots

Red Sox

Beaneaters

Duffy was a star player for the Boston Beaneaters in 1894. His numbers are still gaudy, even by today’s standards.

Hugh Duffy set the all-time record for batting average in 1894. What was his average?

.287

.444

.312

Duffy will always be a Triple Crown legend. In 1894, he set the all-time single-season batting average record, at .444, a mark that has never been equaled.

Which team did Ty Cobb play for when he earned the Triple Crown?

San Francisco Giants

Florida Marlins

Detroit Tigers

Cobb was the first Detroit Tigers player to earn the Triple Crown, but he wouldn’t be the last.

What’s special about Joe Medwick’s Triple Crown?

He was the last NL player to win it.

He was in rehab the season he won it.

He only had six fingers.

Medwick was the last NL player to win the Crown ... and it was a long time ago. He won the title all the way back in 1937.

How many Triple Crown winners were there in 1933?

0

1

2

In 1933, the rarest of events transpired when two players won the Triple Crown. Jimmie Foxx won the AL version and Chuck Klein won the NL.

In which city did Nap Lajoie play when he won the Triple Crown?

Houston

Phoenix

Philadelphia

In 1901 Nap Lajoie was the star player for the Philadelphia Athletics. That season, he had a batting average of .422 and also had 125 RBIs.

Which team did Ted Williams play for when he won the Triple Crown?

Oakland Athletics

St. Louis Cardinals

Boston Red Sox

Williams was the Red Sox standout who won the Crown not once, but twice. He won the title in 1942 and 1947.

In 1933, two players won the Triple Crown. They were both from which city?

Philadelphia

New York

Chicago

In 1933, Chuck Klein and Jimmie Foxx won the Triple Crown, and they were both playing in Philadelphia — Foxx for the Athletics and Klein for the Phillies.

How old was Lou Gehrig when he won the Triple Crown?

21

31

51

Gehrig was no spring chicken when he won his one and only Triple Crown. The Yankees star was 31, but that didn’t stop him from batting .363.

How many RBIs did Paul Hines tally during his 1878 Triple Crown season?

10

50

150

In 1878, Hines hit 50 RBIs to go with his .358 batting average and four home runs. It was enough to earn him the Triple Crown that year.

Jimmie Foxx and Chuck Klein both won the Triple Crown in 1933. Which man hit more home runs?

Foxx

Klein

Foxx and Klein won the Triple Crown in the AL and NL, respectively. But Foxx blasted 58 home runs; Klein hit just 28.

Lou Gehrig won the Triple Crown in 1934. How many batting titles did he earn during his career?

1

11

13

Gehrig timed his hitting streak very well. He had just one batting title in his career, and it occurred during his Triple Crown-winning season.

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